US Declaration of Independence

The United States Declaration of Independence was the statement adopted by the Second Continental Congress on 4 July 1776, announcing the independence of Great Britain's Thirteen Colonies as the "United States". John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and Robert Livingston wrote the declaration, and it is most famous for saying that, "All men are created equal," as well as stating that humans have, "Certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness." The document inspired the declarations of independence by other former European colonies and set the standard for new republics in the future.